Virginia Speeding Ticket Defenses

Calibration Certificates for Radar, Lidar, and Police Speedometer

Most Virginia speeding ticket defenses attack the police calibration certificates. In order to prove that a driver is guilty of speeding an officer must rely on a machine as the primary source of evidence. If a traffic attorney uses the proper speeding ticket defense, an officer will be required to produce evidence that the speed measuring device was calibrated recently and that the calibration certificates are in the proper format.

At Nichols & Green, pllc, we inspect the officer's equipment calibrations and check for format errors. Police calibration certificate defenses are by far the most common ways to win a speeding ticket trial in Virginia.

LIDAR, RADAR and Pacing

There are three basic types of police speed measuring devices in Virginia: LIDAR, RADAR, and Pacing. Each one has its own speeding ticket defenses. If properly challenged, a police officer mistakes may create a successful speeding ticket defense.

Speedometer Calibrations

If you want to have an effective speeding ticket defense, it can be very helpful to have a speedometer calibration done on your car. Many cars' speedometers are a few mph lower than they should be. This causes drivers to driver faster than they believe they are driving. A calibration certificate that shows a low speedometer can be used as mitigating evidence (evidence to lessen punishment rather than prove innocence).

Also, if you want to have an effective speeding ticket defense and you want to testify that you were watching your speedometer and were never speeding, it is often necessary to have a speedometer calibration certificate to prove your speedometer was accurate.

DMV Record

The most important factor in determining the punishment for a speeding case is often a driver's DMV record. Unless you have a bad record, it is usually beneficial to bring a copy of your record to court. Always give a copy of your DMV record to your speeding ticket attorney.

Like a credit report, a DMV record can sometimes contain errors or surprises. It is good practice to get your DMV record well before trial so that you can spot errors and fix them before your court date.

If you have traffic convictions on your DMV record, make sure your pending ticket will not exceed the maximum allowed demerit points. If you have questions about whether you could lose your license for too many traffic tickets, call us today.

Should I Take a Driving Improvement Course?

There are many different types of driver improvement courses. Sometimes taking a course before trial can help your case, other times it can hurt your case. Before trial and before taking any driver improvement courses, consult a local attorney. For more information about Virginia Driver Improvement Courses click here.

What if the Officer Does Not Show Up?

Hoping that the officer won't show up is NOT an effective speeding ticket defense in Virginia. In Virginia, officers rarely do not appear for court and if an officer does not show up to traffic court many judges will continue the case at least one time to allow the officer a chance to appear. While hoping the officer won't appear may work in other states, it is not a good Virginia speeding ticket defense strategy.

Top Ten Worst Va. Speeding Ticket Defenses

Here is a list of the top ten worst speeding ticket defenses.

"I was just going with the flow of traffic."

"It was an emergency; I was rushing to get to...." (something that was not a real emergency).

"The police officer was going just as fast!"

"I was speeding because I needed to go to the bathroom."

"The officer was rude to me."

"I was speeding to get home because I was really... sick, sleepy, drunk, dizzy, etc."

"I did not know the speed limit."

"I was in a new/different car and I didn't realize I was going that fast."

"My car is physically unable of going that fast." (It is very rare for this to work without an attorney and good evidence.)

Our Location

Serving the Following Areas:

Fairfax County, Fairfax City, Prince William County, Loudoun County, Arlington County, City of Alexandria, Manassas, Manassas Park, Town of Haymarket, City of Vienna, Town of Herndon, Town of Reston, City of Falls Church, and Federal Court (Eastern District of Virginia)